Coastal Credit Union Commits to Symitar Conversion

The $2.2 billion Coastal Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C., plans to convert to the Symitar Episys core processing platform and run it in-house, according to Symitar owner Jack Henry & Associates in Monett, Mo.

The 177,100-member Coastal CU cited the need for more flexibility to address operating inefficiencies and the ability to creatively extend core functionality as processing requirements evolve in its decision, Symitar said.

“Coastal Credit Union was the largest credit union on its current core system and had exceeded the system’s functional capabilities,” Symitar said in its announcement.

“As channels grow increasingly complex, the core has to be nimble enough to support real-time channel needs and not create barriers to the movement of data between those channels,” said Tami Langton, vice president of business transformations at Coastal.

Symitar now claims more than 35% of the market for credit unions of more than $1 billion in assets, and Coastal – a pioneer in credit union use of video tellers and before that, online banking – cited the ability to be part of that user community in its decision.

Ted Bilke, president of Symitar, “Our people, core and complementary solutions, and client collaboration align with Coastal Credit Union’s own culture. It is important for us to provide the tools for credit unions to advance their role in the financial ecosystem, and at the same time have credit unions that take a vested interest in furthering the collective strength of their peers.”